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Tuesday, July 3, 2012

SME lending grew 30% this year at Emirates NBD

Dubai: Emirates NBD said its lending to small- and medium-sized companies has grown 30 per cent this year and it plans to double that business over the next three years.

The Dubai government-controlled lender is boosting loans to small companies in the tourism, logistics, transportation, trading, food and beverage and services industries as economic growth rebounds in the second-biggest Arab economy, Vikas Thapar, Emirates NBD’s general manager for consumer finance and head of business banking, said.

“Dubai historically has been a haven for small and medium enterprises,” Thapar said. “SMEs were never over-leveraged, so they never had that kind of a negative impact from the crisis. Their cost structures are low and decision-making is fast.”

Economic growth in Dubai may accelerate to 3.5 to four per cent this year from 2.8 per cent in 2010, according to Citigroup Inc.